The Necklace of Fire
by fangirlofantisocialness
Summary: Pandora had always been hated. What could you expect, being the daughter of Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange? With the Dark Lord's return on her mind, and a huge crush, Pandora had enough on her mind, but with the mysterious necklace of fire left on her bedside table, Pandora realized she might have a bigger choice- and a bigger role- in the upcoming war than she imagined.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own any characters or settings you recognize. It belongs to JKR. I do not intend to make any money off of this fanfiction.**

 **If the formatting is completely wacked up, forgive me, because I don't know how Fanfiction . net's formatting works… sorry…**

 _I was on platform 9 ¾, looking around at hugging families, friends reuniting, and seventh years yelling about how school was almost over. Never in my life had I felt so alone in such a busy, vibrant place. "Have a Great first year at Hogwarts!" I pictured someone yelling to me. "Don't forget to owl me!" I would respond._

 _But dad and mom were in Azkaban, so I stood on platform alone, tossing my dark curls over my shoulder, feeling alone and looking around, hoping someone would sense my discomfort and guide me in the right direction. After a few minutes, I decided I'd never been graced with luck and I never would be, so I pulled up the courage to ask. Tapping an elderly witch with a vulture topped hat on the shoulder, she said, "excuse me ma'am, could you please direc-"_

 _The woman turned and glared at me, so I held my tongue and turned to a woman with bright red hair and a warm, motherly smile. "Excuse me ma'am, could you please direct me to where I must go to put my trunk?"_

" _Yes, of course darling. You see, bah, just go follow Fred and George over there, they can help you," She said, motioning over to a pair of redheaded twins._

" _Hello apprentice," They said in unison. "How might you need the services of Gred and Forge today?"_

" _I am not your 'apprentice'" I said in what I hoped was a cold voice. "Please direct me to where I might be able to stow my trunk."_

" _Ah, straight to the point, this one. Just hand us your trunk and go ahead and find yourself a compartment." One said._

" _What's your name, by the way?" asked the other._

" _Pandora." I said. "Just Pandora."_

" _Any surname?"_

 _I very well knew my surname would cause everyone to hate me. Everything behind the name Lestrange was hated. My mother was hated. My father was hated. I myself was hated too. I'd decided to keep my surname to myself, while I could. The sorting hat would spoil my secret soon enough._

 _I just shook my head, and ran off. I ducked inside a compartment, sitting directly across from a girl with bushy hair and buckteeth and next to a boy with a round face and dark hair._

" _I'm Neville," said the boy after a few minutes of silence. "I'm Neville Longbottom."_

 _I remembered feeling a sinking feeling in my stomach, for my family taking so much from his._

I woke up from the dream of my first day at Hogwarts, and looked around my Ravenclaw dorm room. It looked just like it did that first day, grand windows arched all around, four poster beds with simple, blue, silk hangings, bedside tables with stacks of books all around. It calmed me. That wasn't exactly a horror dream, but it made me feel sick to my stomach.

"You okay?" Asked a roommate of mine, Lisa Turpin. When I'd first been sorted, most people, including Lisa, refused to speak my name. They'd come a long way. Some of them, at least.

"Fine. Dream. That's all." I replied curtly. Looking over at the clock, I noticed it was six am, almost time to get up. I got up anyways, and began to get ready. It was three weeks until Christmas break, and I'd already put my name down for stay for break. I mean, I didn't have anything to look forward to at the orphanage, so why go back?

"Oh, Okay," murmured Lisa. Lisa could be friendly, but we didn't really hang out at all.

Careful not to wake anyone, I grabbed a bundle of clothes and headed to the fifth and sixth year Ravenclaw girl's bathroom to change. You'd think that with living in an orphanage or a dorm room your whole life you'd get used to changing in front of people, but I never did.

My resemblance to my mother, Bellatrix Lestrange, was uncanny. It was like I'd missed out on dad's DNA completely, and I was a clone of mom. I had her same pale skin, dark curls, heavily lidded dark brown eyes, and I looked every bit as deranged as her, from the glint in my eyes to my sadistic looking smile.

I kept a picture of me and her. She might be an insane lunatic, but growing up without a family was hard on me, and I needed something to hold on to. In the picture, she was in a long, black, lacy dress, holding a small baby cloaked in black. In almost every picture I'd seen of her she'd looked like an escapee of a mental health institute from an age where women still had to wear dresses, but in this picture, when she was looking down at me, tickling my chin and grinning, she didn't look like a female satan. She looked more like a regular mom, bringing her kid to a costume party or something, and it was hard to picture her as… as what she was. Is. A murderess. A torturess. The female embodiment of the devil.

Sometimes- no - all the time, I yearned to be the daughter of someone else. A mom who didn't try to be the left hand woman of someone planning on taking over the world. That would be nice.

I sighed, and began to brush through my hair. Today, since I'd gotten up early, I could straighten my hair. It was a time consuming endeavour, considering how much hair I had, and how tightly my corkscrew curls were wound. By the time I was done, a yawning Cho Chang and Marietta Edgecomb had joined me, doing up their makeup and braiding their hair.

I didn't talk to them. They were some of the people who didn't forgive my parents.

I packed up the hair straightener, and brushed nonexistent dust from my uniform. The Ravenclaw tie looked fabulous on some people, like Cho, or even Luna Lovegood, but it didn't match my looks at all. If any uniform looked right on me, it would've been Slytherin. The blue of Ravenclaw looked horrid with my shade of brown eyes, and- bah, the bronze? Try pairing _bronze_ with- _dark brown_ (!). I mean, I'd never been one for petty beautician magic, but it would be nice if the uniform looked okay on me.

But enough about that.

My first lesson that day was charms, my second worst subject behind arithmancy. Somehow, I made Harry Potter's- yes, _the_ Harry Potter's- desk explode. (And he was pretty much the worst person who's desk I could explode, except maybe Neville's, since my parents tortured his, and since Harry is basically the epitome of anti-deatheater.)

ANYHOO, I got yelled at, extra homework, blah blah blah. What I really cared about was the was Lavender Brown whispered to Parvati Patil. "What a deatheater. Like, seriously, shouldn't she be in Azkaban with her parents? It's only a matter of time until she kills us all. Like, we should just lock her up now, before it's too late."

Like, I know you're supposed to 'shrug it off' because 'they're just trying to get a reaction from you, and if you don't give them one they'll stop' and 'they're only doing it because they feel insecure themselves'.

Well, firstly, easier said than done. Secondly, it doesn't even work, and thirdly, I _highly_ doubted Lavender Brown felt insecure. She basically drowned the world in her cleavage, and she talked loudly and confidently at every opportunity.

When all's said and done, I did really think calling her a… 'slug' (Not a slug, but a similar sounding word) was a little uncalled for, but I didn't get in trouble because Flitwick was too busy helping Harry to notice.

By the time lunch was ready, the rumors had spread like wildfire, and half the castle was convinced that I had cast the killing curse at Harry and that I'd narrowly missed him, blowing up his desk instead. Lunch was so unbearable that when I caught Draco's eye, I tugged the end of my hair and stood up. It was our signal, saying 'meet me in our special place'. He nodded, tapping his nose. His hair was too short to tug without looking weird.

I didn't bother to grab food from the table, because the kitchens were on our way to the hiding spot.

I reached the kitchens first, asking the elves for a parcel of food.

"Tiffy is wondering what would Missius Lestrange care for?" asked Tiffy.

"Uh, one roast beef sandwich, a ham one, some pickles, some tarts, please." I replied. Not two minutes later the elves handed me a large cardboard box, and Draco stepped through the door. "Already have your food, _darling_." I said.

Darling was a bit of a joke between us. When we were little, his parents would force us into minescule dress robes, and made us call each other darling. It wasn't much, but it had evolved into a huge joke.

"Excellent, my _darling_." he replied, taking the box from my arms. We walked a little ways down the hall, and I halted in front of a portrait of Helena Ravenclaw turning down a suitor. I tapped her nose with my wand, and the portrait came to life like all the others in the castle.

Helena knew us, so she didn't even bother to conceal the way through the picture. We stepped through the frame (him going first, then helping me up, ever the gentleman) and we were welcomed into a small square room, covered in pillows and blankets, with posters of wizarding bands and quidditch teams covering the walls. When Draco'd first found it, it had been completely stone, but over the years, things had accumulated and it felt more like home than Malfoy Manor, the orphanage, or the Lestrange Estate ever had; or ever would.

"So, I'm assuming you didn't try to cruciate Harry?" Said Draco. Usually in public Draco called Harry by his last name- Potter- to hold up his image. His parents weren't locked up, so he had to be careful to be the proper Slytherin.

"What?! No!" I responded. "Who on _Earth_ told you that?!"

"Pansy."

"I always hated her." I muttered to myself.

"Yeah, yeah. Hand me one of those sandwiches."

I did so, and he grinned. We never ate in silence, we always laughed and talked and gossiped about all the people we hated. Today was no different.

"Oh, Merlin, did you _see_ Padma's hair? It looked like bowtruckle barf." He said, rolling his eyes.

" _That's_ what you think it looks like? Eugh, it was more like hippogriff dung." I replied, rolling my eyes in disgust.

"Excuse me for being unable to compare hair to the proper form of waste, _darling_." he said, and we both broke into peals of laughter.

"Ugh, two words- Lavender Brown."

He retched. "Ew, her shirts make me wanna barf. She needs to stop borrowing first years' and get her own!"

"I know, right! It's like, 'Honey, They don't make you look attractive!'"

And with that, my worries of rumors and that _awful_ Lavender were banished from my mind, and I could focus on my friendship with Draco.

It may sound weird, but Draco was really the only person I trusted. He knew what it was like to be the child of deatheaters. He didn't care about impressing Harry Potter.

In fact, back in third year, Draco and I had come up with the perfect meaning of Harry Potter.

Draco played with my hair as he talked about how Zabini's ties annoyed him, and, well, it was hard not to be transported back to the memory.

 _It was a Tuesday afternoon, and rain pattered down on the castle. Draco and I were sitting in the room, talking about overrated people._

" _And that," he finished off, "is why our minister of magic is overrated."_

" _Agreed. You know who else? Harry Potter. Everyone treats him as a prince, unable to see how mediocre he is."  
_ " _Indeed, Darling. He is a bit like… bread. Plain. Unassuming."_

" _I like bread," I'd countered. "Plus, bread isn't overrated, everyone knows what it is."_

" _Very true… crackers."_

" _Too salty. Dresses? Everyone thinks they look so nice but they're really no big deal." I said._

" _But they do look nice. Potter doesn't."_

" _Oh well."_

" _Khakis."_

" _Oh Merlin, Draco. Khakis. Harry Potter is undoubtedly khakis."_

And I suppose most of us were khakis. It had been hard not to make other people fit into clothing types too.

Draco was a suit & tie. I was a blouse and dress skirt with tall stilettos. Mom was a black lacy dress with a corset that made you look killer but was uncomfortable. But it was impossible to pin down one person.

Fred Weasley.

 **So... what did you all think? I'm not really expecting reviews because I'm awful at writing, I'm doing it soully to entertain myself and if I can, you. Even leave negative reviews, that would be ok. Constructive criticism, even destructive criticism can be good for you.**

 **Hope to see you soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I own nothing! This is just intended to be fun, not to make money. I'd like to thank fangirlinghermit, my best friend, for beta-ing, and Elizabeth Stanley for being my first and only reviewer! Love and thanks to you both! (Gosh, I sound like a melodramatic Oscar winner or something!)**

 **Without further ado, The Necklace of Fire!**

Call me crazy, but I always studied Muggle Studies in the library with Neville Longbottom on Fridays.

There are several reasons you could call me crazy. 1), Friday nights are supposed to be relaxing. 2), we were both pretty good at muggle studies, and 3), my parents ruined his life.

He, being fabulously forgiving, didn't hold it against me at all, since I wasn't the one cruciating his family to insanity. Strange, how the person at school most affected by my parents didn't hate me, when nearly everyone else did.

Neville was great, but I'd been trying to get him to understand that rubber ducks weren't actual ducks for three weeks now, and it was getting tiring.

"No, rubber ducks _aren't_ real!" I said, literally facepalming.

"Then why do they squeak!? Tell me Pandora, why do they squeak?"

"Because muggles want them to seem more realistic Neville!"

"But why wouldn't they use real ducks if they want them to be realistic? They _must_ use real ducks!"

"Yeah, sure, whatever," I said, rolling my eyes at him. It wasn't worth the fight. "But when our Muggle Studies OWL comes around, and you have to write a twelve paragraph essay on rubber ducks, don't blame me for your lackluster understanding."

"But they must be real!"

"Neville, _rubber_ ducks. Are real ducks made of _rubber_?"

"I guess not…"

Finally. Progress.

"Let's move on to electric outlets," I said, since I struggled to understand those.

"Actually," said a new voice, "let's move on to dinner. Panda, you've been up here for the past eight hours. Aren't you _hungry_?"

I turned around to see Draco holding a chocolate chip muffin in one hand and a thermos of chamomile tea. At least I hoped it was chamomile. That was my favorite.

"Chamomile, right?" I asked. He handed me the thermos and nodded.

"C'mon, I've hardly seen you today, and you've been explaining ducks to him for _hours_! Can we hang out now?" begged Draco.

Neville was looking at Draco like he'd never seen Draco do anything but insult people, which was probably true. Draco had to keep up his rep, with his parents still around. Me? I didn't have to stress being mean as much, but with the Dark Lord's return, I knew it was only a matter of time until mom and dad were free again.

"What're you looking at, Longbottom?" he snapped, and Neville blushed, returning to his textbook. Feeling guilty, I grabbed my textbook and thermos, said goodbye, and walked off with Draco. " _Finally_ I get to see you. Stupid Pansy has been driving me insane, and I-"

"Draco, can I just eat for a few minutes? You know, I love hating people with you, but I have an awful headache." I said, cutting him off.

"Uh, sure. Yeah. Would you like me to go to Madam Pomfrey?" he offered.

"Who needs Madam Pomfrey?" asked Fred from behind me.

"No one," I said, turning to face him. Another attribute to his list of what I used to define him; jokester, twin, smart-ish, dishonest and now caring.

His brother was clearly patterned socks. Goofy, but quiet. Quieter than Fred, at least. Less noticeable than Fred.

I didn't realize anything was happening until Draco started dragging me down the corridor, I was so wrapped up in trying to define 'Fred'.

"You have a crush on Fred?" said Draco, as we rounded the hall.

"What? No! Ew! No! Fred is just the person I haven't been able to label as a clothing yet, and it's infuriating."

"You totally like him." he said. He'd let go of the back of my shirt, and we were climbing a staircase together.

"No, I," Okay, pausing real quick, I knew it was a lie, and that I'd regret it, but I said it anyways. "I like someone else Draco."

"What!? Who!?" he demanded, throwing his arm in front of me so I had to stop. I turned to face him.

"Uh, I'm not telling!" I said, hoping he couldn't tell how nervous I was. He shouted names at me as I raced up the corridor towards Ravenclaw common room.

"Harry! George! Neville! Lee! Blaise! Goyle! Moi!"

"No! No! No! No! No! No! No!" I yelled back, my voice echoing through the castle.

He began to run after me, yelling "Whooooooooo!" I was panting heavily when I finally managed to get to the Ravenclaw tower. I bashed the knocker on the wall, and tried to hear Rowena Ravenclaw's voice with Draco's whoooooo-ing echoing around.

" _From here to there I come, from there to here I go. What am I?"_

"I don't have time for these questions! For the sake of Merlin, let me in!"

" _That is not an adequate answer. From here to there I come, from there to here I go. What am I?"_

"Ah- uh- ah-" I began. Draco was getting closer, I could see his shadow at the top of the staircase. "A T!" I yelled, hoping it was right.

" _Exactly. Sometimes you must look at the literal side of things."_ chirped Rowena.

"Yeah, sure," I said, bolting through the door. I barely managed to close it in time, Draco very nearly got through. I couldn't hear him pounding on the door, but I knew that was what he was doing.

I flopped onto my bed, wondering what I'd have to do tomorrow. And the next day. And the next. Good lord, I'd have to make someone up!

"Hey Pandora," said Padma, walking into our dorm arm in arm with Lisa. "Why was Malfoy trying to force his way into our common room?"

"Oh, I don't know," I replied, which satisfied them enough since they didn't care about me.

I ran a comb through my hair as I listened to Padma and Lisa's girl talk. "So I heard that Lav is going to ask Seamus to Hogsmeade!"

"No. Way."

"I know! Lavi said she was done with him after the Yule Ball when she caught him snogging a sixth year, but I guess she cares a lot for him!"

"That is _so_ romantic!"

"I know!"

Did they even know how idiotic they sounded? They sounded like the stereotypical cheerleader ditzes from films where the dorky girl gets the popular guy. Really.

"So, are _you_ going to ask anyone to Hogsmeade Pandora?" they asked, turning their attention on me. No doubt it was so they could tell the whole castle.

"No." I said, hoping they got the whole 'go away' message. They did, running to the common room to gossip more.

Being alone usually meant worrying about the Dark Lord's return, and wondering what would happen. Would mom and dad break out? Would they take me back? Would I become a deatheater? Probably all three of those would happen, to be honest. A chill ran through me.

 _What if they killed me for not being Slytherin?_

The moment I got sorted flashed back into my head…

" _Lestrange, Pandora" called professor Mcgonagall. There were whispers in the Great Hall, and several people backed away from me. I shuffled up to the stool, and Mrs. Mcgonagall placed the hat on my head._

"Where should you go, Miss Lestrange?" _It spoke in my mind._ "You definitely could do well in Slytherin. That's where your parents would want you to go. But you wish to prove you are different. If they come back, you think they will disown you for being Hufflepuff or Gryffindor, but Ravenclaw could be okay…"

 _I wondered how the hat could read my thoughts. I wondered how it just… knew._

 _Out loud the hat yelled "Ravenclaw!" and three tables (Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor) burst into a huge round of applause, and Ravenclaws scooted together so I wouldn't have anywhere to sit._

I shook my head from my daydream, pausing to sip some lukewarm tea. They wouldn't kill me for my house. They'd probably see it as an asset to have a person in a house other than Slytherin. A spy, of sorts. I didn't want to spy for the Dark Lord, but I'd do what I had to to stay alive.

I didn't really have a choice in where I would stand in the war. Obviously mom and dad would force me, threaten me, do whatever it took to have me fight with the Dark Lord. I'd have to learn occlumency, in order to keep my displeasure a secret, and learn to act well. I could start with Draco, acting around him, convincing of outrageous things.

Like the fact that Padma and Lavender were fighting over him!

That thought was so outrageously hilarious I started laughing so hard that Padma came sprinting upstairs to check on me, and the sight of her freshened everything, and I started crying.

"Y-you okay Pandora?" she asked nervously.

"Y-ye-e-e-eah" I replied, wiping my eyes.

It was going to be a fun week.

 **Sorry for the super short filler chapter! Gosh, that one was awful, wasn't it… I have HUGE plans for the next chapter though, and it's either going to be SUPER long or split into two chapters, I'm not sure how I'm going to do it yet…**


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